13 Dishes That Shanghai Does Better Than NYC

Wishing you are in New York right now, celebrating the holidays and eating your way around town? Seriously, aside from the Christmas decor and possible wintery snow, we have nothing to envy from the Big Apple's F&B stage. We can  find the same trendy names and the exact same in amazing dishes around Shanghai, and usually they’re less expensive.

1. COCO & CRU VS. DALIAH

Coco and Cru have made some serious NY waves by offering up the flavors of Sydney. Shanghai’s Daliah has many dishes in a similar style, with added pinches of amazing craziness.Also, Coco just puts berries on a toast, come on Aussies do better.   

Coco & Cru

Address: 643 Broadway, New York, NY 10012

Hours: 8am to 8pm

Daliah

Address: 408 Shaanxi Bei Lu, near Beijing Xi Lu

Hours:  11am to 9pm

Tel: [phone]

Price:  < RMB 100 per person

2. GEBHARD'S BEER CULTURE VS. MADISON KITCHEN

Gebhard’s Beer Culture has a 6-page selection of beers with great sandwiches. We can’t deny it’s amazing, but we’re not jealous, how could we be with Shanghai’s Madison Kitchen churning out killer sandwiches. It was developed by Austin Hu, one of the most talented chefs in the city, and everything he does with his golden hands is amazing.

Gebhard’s Beer Culture

Address: 228 W 72nd St, New York, NY 10023

Hours: 12pm to 2am

Madison Kitchen

Address: 1414 Huaihai Zhong Lu, near Fuxing Zhong Lu

Hours: Wed-Mon 11am-7pm

Tel: [phone]

Price:  <  RMB100 per person

3. 2ND CITY VS. MI THAI

2nd City serves causal Filipino food. In Shanghai we have many South Asian restaurants, and Mi Thai is one of the best. Reasonable prices and delicious environment with certainly a lower bill.

2nd City

Address: 525 Hudson St, New York, NY 10014

Hours: 11am to 11pm

Mi Thai

Address: 195 Anfu Lu, 2/F, near Wulumuqi Zhong Lu

Tel: [phone]

Price: < RMB 200 per person

4. SCREAMERS PIZZERIA VS. MAMA MIA

At Screamer's Pizzeria, you can get pizza with pasta on top. But in Shanghai where over 60 professional Italian chefs consistently brings an authentic touch of Italian cuisine to the east, we like to keep things real. Don’t mess with these guys, they bark a lot.

Screamer's Pizzeria

Address: 620 Manhattan Avenue, Greenpoint

Hours: Monday to Thursday, 5pm to 11pm; Saturday & Sunday 11:30am to 3:30pm, 4pm to 11pm

Mamma Mia

Address: 810 Yinghua Lu, near Shinan Lu/ 1333 Huahaizhong Lu  2nd floor

Hours: 10:00am - 10:00pm

Tel: [phone]

Price: < RMB 100 per person

5. CARLA HALL'S SOUTHERN CHICKEN VS. GRINDER

Celebrity chef Carla Hall  put all her knowledge and soul food expertise into creating the most delicious Nashville-style fried chicken in NY. As mouth-watering as it looks, Grinde also serves a mean, cheesey burger. in different variations.

Carla Hall's Southern Chicken

Address: 115 Columbia Street, Cobble Hill

Hours: Closed Tuesdays; Monday, Wednesday to Friday 4pm to 11pm; Saturday 2pm to 10pm, Sunday 12pm to 7pm

Grinder

Address: 1097 Wuding Lu, near Yanping Lu

Hours: 11.30am to 11:30pm

Tel: [phone]

Price: < RMB 100 per person

6. TAPESTRY VS. EPICES ET FOI GRAS

Tapestry is a very trendy, modern Indian restaurant combining American style with Indian spices. They put flowers on warm meat so they get over cooked fast and  become wishy-washy. Epice et Foi gras does French food, and they top crispy and delectable pistachio on their lamp.  Shanghai wins.

Tapestry

Address: 60 Greenwich Avenue, West Village

Hours: Monday to Wednesday, 5:30pm to 10:30pm; Thursday to Sunday,5:30pm to 11:30pm

Epices et Foi gras

Address: 309 Hankou Lu, near Shandong Zhong Lu

Hours: 11 am to 10:30 pm

Tel: [phone]

Price: RMB 190 the dish

7. LE COUCOU VS. MR AND MRS. BUND

Le Coucou is a French restaurant which features unique dishes created by internationally acclaimed chef Daniel Rose. Think you are unique guys? In Shanghai we have Mr & Mrs Bund AND Paul Pairet AND it s open until 2 AM in the weekend.

Le Coucou

Address: 138 Lafayette Street, Soho 70-80

Hours: Monday to Friday, 7am to 11am, 11:30am to 2pm, 5pm to 11pm; Saturday 7am to 2pm

Mr and Mrs Bund

Address: 18 Zhongshan Dong Yi Lu, Bund 18, 6/F

Hours: 5:30 PM – 10:30 PM in the week, until 2 AM the weekend

Tel: [phone]

Price: > RMB300

8. HAO NOODLE & TEA VS. CHINESE LOCAL STORES

The name of this dish is dandanmian (担担面) it’s a Sichuan dish. It’s oily, spicy and in NY it’s a new trend to have these for lunch. In Shanghai they’ve been having it for lunch for centuries, and it costs ten time less. BOOM!

Hao Noodle & Tea

Address: 401 Avenue of the Americas, West Village

 Local Chinese restaurants... Anywhere in the city around RMB 7

9. MAGNUM NEW YORK VS. MAGNUM SHANGHAI

On  this point we can’t say too much, same brand doing the same product. However, Magnum Shanghai is open only a few months a year because it s still  a pop up store. The one in New York is always in open. Point for the big apple. BUT, we can get Magnum at any time of the night during summer thanks to the magic of 24-hour Family Marts on every corner.  

Magnum

Address: New York 134 Prince Street, Soho

Hours: Sunday to Wednesday, 12pm to 8pm; Thursday to Saturday 12pm to 9pm

Magnum Shanghai [ CLOSED Popo Up store ]

Address: 300 Huaihai Zhong Lu, K11 Art Mall, 6/F, near Huangpi Nan Lu

Hours: 11am to 9pm

Price: RMB 25 the Magnum

10. BY CHLOE VS. SAUCEPAN

By Chloe serves delicious vegan food to fill you up with vitamins. Great. In Shanghai we have plenty of places doing the same. However as we are in China they can also deliver it at home, office, or in a park.

by CHLOE

Address: 60 West 22nd Street, Flatiron

SAUCEPAN

online at http://saucepan.co/

11. UNION FARE VS. MORE THAN EAT

Union Fare is an entire market block with plenty of different food corners. It is a very trendy name all over the world, it’s even given inspiration to the Lost Heaven group. However More Than Eat has more funky vibes!

Union Fare

Address: 7 East 17th Street, Union Square

Hours: Sunday and Monday, 7am to 10pm; Tuesday and Wednesday, 7:30am to 11pm; Thursday and Friday, 7am to 12am

More Than Eat

Address: 758 Julu Lu, 1/F, near Fumin Lu

Hours: 5pm to 11pm

Tel: [phone]

Price: < RMB 200 per person

12. CHIKARASHI VS. LITTLE CATCH

Same concept, similar prices. Poké bowls are quite similar in New York and Shanghai. However, we’ll have to dock Chikarashi a point for using a Japanese name on a Hawaiian dish. Little catch has a much more politically correct name.   

Chikarashi

Address: 227 Canal Street, Little Italy

Hours: Daily, 11:30pm to 4pm

Little Catch

Address: 89 Taixing Lu, East Area, 2F / 247 Wulumuqi Zhong Lu, No 6,

Hours: 10 Am – 9PM

Tel: [phone]

Price: < RMB 100 per person

13. CHA CHA MATCHA VS. LIZZY ALL NATURAL

ChaCha Matcha serves practically everything made with Japanese green tea. It is suppose to be healthy and help you to lose weight. However they also serve it with a donut so… we kind of wonder that’s supposed to work. Lizzy’s All Natural doesn’t promise you magical weight loss or any of that business, just a nutritious experience that will leave you full of energy, ready for your next work out session or whatever else the world might toss your way.

Cha Cha Matcha  

Address: 373 Broome Street, Nolita

Hours: Monday to Thursday, 8am to 7pm; Friday, 8am to 8pm, Saturday and Sunday, 9am to 8pm

Lizzy All Natural

Address: 667 Changhua Lu/ 758 Julu Lu/ 425 YanPing Lu

Hours: depend the venue,

Tel: [phone]

Price: around RMB 30

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